Opinion Archive

In Florida, zoning boards are statutorily required and used to ensure controlled land development. They review applications for variances, special uses and rezoning requests and send their decisions and recommendations to the Board of County Commissioners.  

Navarre has a new boys basketball coach. And I really like the hire.


The Raiders named Todd Arasmith as their new coach last week and based on the reaction on social media, I’d say the school hit a home run on this one. It’s exactly what Navarre needed to do.

With the recent death of Pope Francis, the Roman Catholic Church has scheduled a conclave to begin on May 7. As a former Roman Catholic, now a born-again Christian, and a protestant pastor, I am interested in the conclave’s election process, so I decided to watch the 2016 Oscar-winning movie “Conclave.”

I can’t emphasize enough how important it is that you buy tickets to Navarre’s Centennial Celebration which will be held on June 21. The tickets are $100 each and almost every dollar of that ticket is being spent on the food, the decorations, the party favor of a commemorative coin, and the entertainment. You will enjoy learning about Navarre’s founding in 1925 and the recording history of this area dating back a century before that. You don’t have to be a history nerd to hear the stories that will be told. In fact, our history has every element of what makes a good story – fantastic, but true. You will hear stories of murder, sheriff’s politicking, love, lust, marriages, adoptions, divorce, more death (or was it murder) money, fame, fortune, and then losing it all again – all wrapped up in what was going on with the rest of the world and in Northwest Florida. You will be amazed at how busy our little unincorporated area of Santa Rosa County has been in the last 100 years. All that, and a phenomenal band, Six Piece Suits and scrumptious food.

In 1999, congress declared May would be National Military Appreciation Month so the citizens of our country could publicly thank everyone who puts on the uniform of their branch of service.

It’s time to take a step back in the sports world and restore some sanity to it.


Because when you have someone make a threat to shoot an umpire, that’s a problem. A big problem.

One of the required courses in the seminary from which I got my degree was apologetics. For those not familiar with the term, apologetics is not a course in which you learn how to say you are sorry in meaningful ways. The term comes from the Greek word apologia which means “to make a defense” and is found in the Apostle Peter’s first letter to the churches in Asia Minor. He exhorts Christians to turn away from evil and be zealous for what is good, and “in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy.” Knowing that such a life will be noticed in a world that does not honor Christ the Lord as holy nor is typically zealous for what is good, he continues, “always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect.” The field of apologetics is engaged in teaching Christians how to defend the Christian faith.

Last week I was writing about my critics and this week I started scanning pages of one hundred-year-old copies of the Milton Gazette, which is now the Santa Rosa Press Gazette.  I found the following printed on May 1, 1925 – which could have been my column last week – just said in a different way…

The Ibis Road and Makaira Ridge debacle in Milton has spotlighted deeper issues on our county commissioners board.

It’s easy to focus on the athletic talent of an athlete. But don’t ignore what they do in the classroom either.


There are a ton of athletes who get the job done on and off the court, not only locally at the high school level, but when they go off to college as well.